Pages of Joy // John Greco

Image is everything—or at least that’s what this world wants us to believe. Because of social media, our lives today can be as public as we want. In that, there is the temptation to show others only the most polished and put-together versions of ourselves.

The gospel, however, reveals that the good life isn’t reserved for those who seem to have it all together. In His great mercy, God welcomes the broken and the hurting, the weak and the lost, and those struggling with sin and addiction. These are the sorts of people God adopts as sons and daughters. But this shouldn’t surprise us, for God often chooses to display His power in ways that seem foolish to this world:

• When God formed a nation to be His own possession, He did not lay hold of a powerful empire. Instead, He chose Abram and Sarai, a Mesopotamian couple of no reputation who were too old to bear children.

• When God delivered His people from slavery in Egypt, He did not use soldiers or chariots. He chose, instead, to work through Moses, a murderer-turned-shepherd with a speech impediment.

• And when it was time to save the world, Jesus conquered the devil and defeated the power of sin by dying on a Roman cross like a common criminal. Then He overturned death itself by walking out of a garden tomb.

To the world, the wisdom of God doesn’t make much sense. That is why the apostle Paul, when he came to Corinth, did not rely on fancy speeches or his ability to motivate a crowd. Instead, “in weakness with great fear and trembling” (1 Corinthians 2:3), he declared the good news of salvation. Paul wanted there to be no mistake—the power of the gospel to transform lives had nothing to do with him and everything to do with the great God he served.

No matter who you are or where you’ve come from, regardless of what’s in your past or how this world may perceive you, God wants to put His power on display in your life. You are His. The Holy Spirit is at work within you, so there’s no limit to what God may choose to do through you.

Your own testimony of God’s faithfulness is itself evidence of His great love and power. And because you have the Spirit, you have everything you need to be an instrument of God’s grace to those around you. Don’t spend time worrying about your image or reputation; God has a way of using people the world overlooks.